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Entry Level Digital Camera: Olympus D-540 Zoom

by Justin Thomas • December 9, 2004

It can be a frustrating search for quality digital camera for under $200.

Many entry-level cameras are poorly built, have terrible image quality, or will only deliver acceptable results under perfect daylight conditions. Against that background, the Olympus D-540 Zoom really stands out, with great color, great flexibility, a 3.3 megapixel CCD coupled with a nice 3x optical zoom lens, and great ease of use. That said, this is an entry-level camera, so you’ll have to accept a few tradeoffs, mainly in the form of some softness in the corners of its images, and in its somewhat leisurely shutter response and shot to shot cycle times. For the price though, it’s a tough act to beat, just the ticket for new users to get their feet wet with digital.